Ruined Castle: an atmospheric name for an atmospheric walk. Not only do you get to spend time at one of the Blue Mountains’ most iconic rock formations, but you’ll also walk through a truly beautiful stretch of forest. It won’t be whether you see a lyrebird, but how many!
Although the walk is graded by the National Parks Service as hard, it’s definitely more on the moderate side. There are a couple of steep climbs, but the majority of the walk is actually flat, giving you plenty of time between the hills to relax and get your breath back. Don’t let the signposts put you off!
Here’s exactly what to expect on the walk to Ruined Castle.
The walk to Ruined Castle
The stats
Distance: 9km return (as measured by our Apple Watch, official signs say less)
Elevation: 294m
Difficulty: Moderate
The walk to Ruined Castle should take about 2.5 to 3.5 hours in total (not including the time you spend enjoying the views from the top). It involves two steep climbs and a whole lot of easy walking in-between. If you want to stand on the castle itself you will need to negotiate one very short scramble (via the easiest access route).
As long as you find the right route up, the scramble is not difficult, but we’ll give much more details in the track notes below. The walk is very well signposted as far as the base of the castle.
Ruined Castle from Castle Head
The two different start points for the trail
There are two starting points to walk to the Ruined Castle, and one is a lot closer to your destination than the other. Both join the Federal Pass, which is a trail that ends at the Ruined Castle.
Option 1: the shortest route
The shortest route to the Ruined Castle begins at the Golden Staircase on Narrow Neck, and that’s the route we will describe in more detail below.
Option 2: the long, steep route
If you want a longer walk you can also begin at Scenic World - which we’ve also done - and is another great option. This version is almost double the length though. As with the Golden Staircase route, you will have one big descent down from Scenic World to the valley floor via the Furber Steps and then have to climb back up them at the end.
The view of Ruined Castle and Mount Solitary from Mount Solitary from Castle Head
Option 2.5: Steep walk down, train back up
There’s a third option (well, second version amended!) for those who want to avoid the steep hike at the end. This route is the same as the second option (starting at Scenic World, hiking down the Furber Steps and onto the Ruined Castle). However, to avoid the steep climb up the Furber Steps, you can take the Scenic World railway back up (last train is at 4.50pm at time of writing). The one way train ticket isn’t cheap, but it is a much quicker and easier way back to the top!
This would mean that you would only have one moderate climb up to Ruined Castle and I would class this way of doing the track as easy. If you want to walk from Scenic World, you will join the Federal Pass (passing the bottom of the Golden Staircase) and continue along the same route.
The hike to the Ruined Castle
Descending the Golden Staircase
From the top of the Golden Staircase to the bottom is 1km long (although the sign says 800m!). The beginning of the route down is fairly rustic, as it’s mainly a dirt path with the odd rock and tree root.
There’s no scrambling, but it is not a well formed staircase by any means! There are some short flat sections throughout the descent, but the majority of the way takes you fairly steeply downhill. The latter half is a mix of metal stairs and wooden steps, a few of which are showing a bit of erosion.
Roughly 200m from the trailhead you’ll reach Bottings Lookout which offers a good view of the Three Sisters. For the next couple of hundred metres you enter a rockfall zone so you have to walk straight through without stopping - a shame because there are some wonderful views out towards Mount Solitary!
Soon the more natural stairs give way to metal staircases with handrails, which is useful because there is generally a bit of water running along the middle of the track along this section.
Although there are a few more rocky tree root steps, the majority are now metal or wooden, and make the last 500m of the descent much quicker and easier than the first 500m.
Along the Federal Pass
At the bottom of the Golden Staircase you will meet the Federal Pass and turn right to head to Ruined Castle (it’s signposted). The next 2.7km is pure bliss.
The path is well maintained and one of the flattest trails in the Blue Mountains!
It makes for a really relaxing stroll, and you can totally immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of the forest. There are no turn offs to look out for and the only thing that might briefly break your reverie are the very short sections that cross landslides.
There are several, but only one is long enough to have had footholds cut into the debris to help you cross easily. None are anything to worry about.
We have walked this section of track many times and we always see lyrebirds. On our most recent visit we were treated to the most incredible display we have ever seen!
One of the many lyrebirds was not in the least bit shy (which is quite rare) and proceeded to go through its repertoire of calls on the path right in front of us for over five minutes! Such a delight!
Every time we left the calls of one lyrebird behind, we entered the realm of the next one. It definitely added something special to the already stunning walk through the fern filled forest.
After 2.7km you will reach the junction for Ruined Castle and Mount Solitary. There’s a toilet here if needed - which staggeringly even had toilet paper, which we weren’t expecting!
The toilet is fully surrounded by giant tree ferns, possibly the prettiest dunny we’ve ever seen : )
The climb to Ruined Castle
From the picturesque loo, you’ll take the signposted stairs on the right up to Ruined Castle. The first 550m are pretty much entirely uphill.
At first it’s on the well made wooden stairs, and then on a more rustic bush track - but not rough by any means. You’ll start to get some great views back towards Castle Head (another great walk in the Katoomba area).
The path then flattens and you will pass by a giant boulder before coming to the base of Ruined Castle. We measured 900m between the junction for Ruined Castle (by the toilet) and the base of the castle where you climb the boulders to the top - none of our measurements for this track match the signposts, but we trust our Applewatch!
There are a quite a few ways you could climb up to Ruined Castle but we’re going to share the route we take, which is the easiest.
The scramble to the top of Ruined Castle
The easiest way up to the top of the castle is to look for a gap in the rock at about the 4.5km mark. There are a few sections which look climbable, but this was the final one. It’s at the top of a path where the trail rounds a corner and goes uphill a little.
On a weekend it’s more obvious as you can see people either trying to climb up, or hear them above you. You can see the rock formation you are looking for in the photo below.
Once you’ve walked up to the start of the boulders you are basically two steps from being on up on the castle.
It is a little tight but if you bridge both sides of the boulders you can easily climb up in just a few steps. There isn’t really any exposure, but if you’ve never done a scramble before and are worried about it, just get someone to stand beneath you and help you with foot placements.
The boulders that you climb between to get up onto the castle, it’s easier than it looks in this photo!
The top of the Ruined Castle
Once you’re up that little tight boulder section you will come out to a series of bigger boulders. From here you can either enjoy the view - which is already wonderful - or explore a bit by rock hopping from boulder to boulder.
There are several spots which make a great place to sit and relax, and the views are just fantastic in every direction.
The views of Castle Head and Katoomba from Ruined Castle
To reach the true top of the castle requires one more scramble. I would say it’s slightly harder than the first because it feels a bit more exposed (the first one is wedged between huge rock formations so you don’t feel like there is a drop).
If you don’t like the look of it, it’s definitely not necessary because the views are already incredible. If you do, the rock is grippy in dry weather and with a couple of moves you are at the very top and are rewarded with 360 degree panoramic views.
The view of Mount Solitary from the very top of Ruined Castle
Mt Solitary views from Ruined Castle
When on any of the boulders on Ruined Castle, as with any unfenced edges, just be really careful with footing, and I probably wouldn’t go up at all in wet weather, when the rock could be slippery.
The top is also very exposed (which is why the views are great) and it will receive the full brunt of any wind, so we wouldn’t recommend scrambling to the summit on a very windy day.
Extending the walk to Mount Solitary
If you want to do a longer walk you can continue on from Ruined Castle to Mount Solitary. Although the distance doesn’t sound like much at 3km each way, the going is a lot tougher. The last 1.1km to the summit is all rock scrambling.
Although no one scramble is any more difficult than the boulder up to Ruined Castle, (if you go the right way!) the cumulation of all of it makes it feel much harder.
If you have plenty of time, food, water, and a sense of adventure then the extension is highly recommended.
It’s worth noting that you will probably need more time than seems reasonable for the distance. If you want to explore the summit and head down to the lookouts below, it will add a further couple of kilometres to the total distance.
You can read our full guide to Mount Solitary here.
Finishing the Ruined Castle Walk
The walk back from Ruined Castle is all easy going until you reach the Golden Staircase.
Depending on how hot it is - and how often you climb hills - the staircases will either be quite tiring or not too bad. They are steep and there isn’t a whole lot of flat track for breathers, but even those not used to hiking will be ok with plenty of breaks.
I think heat makes the main difference; in cool weather it is significantly easier.
Even if you do find the climb tiring, it is definitely worth it! The views from Ruined Castle are just spectacular.
Remember that if you really shudder at the thought of climbing the Golden Staircase you could start at Scenic World and take the train - a much longer walk, but virtually all flat.
Getting to the Ruined Castle trailhead
If you are planning to use the Golden Staircase, the car park is located mid-way along the Narrow Neck Plateau Road. There are a couple of big National Parks sign telling you that this is the trailhead down: one telling you the trail takes 4-5 hours return, the other telling you it takes 6 hours. Neither were correct :-)
The road from Cliff Drive in Katoomba along Narrow Neck is gravel, which - although not silky smooth - was suitable for 2 wheel drive cars at time of writing. There is very limited space at the trailhead (perhaps for just a few cars), so if you’re hiking on a weekend and don’t come early, you might need to park quite a bit further down the road.
If you want to start at Scenic World they have a huge free car park with no time limit.
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